Smoke charge for practice shells



Patented Aug. 26, 1930 warren STATES PATENT CLARENCE J. BAIN AND GEORGE C. HALE, OF DOV-ER, NEW JERSEY SMOKE CHARGE FOR PRACTICE SHELLS No Drawing.

Application filed November 8, 1923.

Serial N0. 673,435.

7 (GRANTED UNDER THE ACT OF MARCH 3, 1883, AS AMENDED APRIL 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes without the payment to us of any royalty thereon.

The present invention relates to smoke charges for practice shells.

The primary object of our invention is the provision of a charge for practice shells which will give an increased volume of smoke and a louder report on firing than is possible with compositions heretofore used.

lVith the foregoing and other objects in view, our invention resides in the novel combination of ingredients and in the details of preparation hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed may be made within the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Heretofore, black powder has been almost universally used as a loading charge for practice shells. lVith shells loaded with black powder, however, observation is sometimes difficult because, at times, the black powder smoke is not sufiiciently concentrated to be readily visible while the shell does not burst with sullicient report to properly assist in the location of the point of impact or explosion.

t has been found, however, that by making chemical mixtures of black powder and oxanilid, black powder and trinitrotoluene, black powder and dinitrotoluene and other similar mixtures that an increased volume and concentration of smoke will be obtained with a considerably louder report than is produced by the explosion of black powder alone. The substances making up the charges may be used separately or combined by pressing the 40 same to the desired density. The pellets formed by pressing may be of any size and may contain any percentage of the substances chosen. When loaded into the practice shell, the pellets may or may not, as convenient, be superimposed by pellets of straight black powder as an igniting charge. The pellets of the above cited mixtures, may be loaded separately into the shell or wrapped in a single carton containing the required number and loaded at one time.

Substances, such as recited, appear to increase the rapidity of the burning of the black powder and thus not only produce a large volume of smoke but also explode with a loud report.

While intended primarily for use with We claim:

The method of producing a large and concentrate-d volume of smoke accompanied by a loud report consistlng in confining a mechanical mixture of black powder and trinitro toluol and then igniting the same. CLARENCE J. BAIN. GEORGE O. HALE.

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